Decades ago, when I was a much younger man, I was a serious waterfowl hunter. I enjoyed the history and traditions of the sport nearly as much as the hunting itself — so much so that for several years, I owned and hunted from an original Dan Kidney sneak boat, built by the legendary boatbuilder in 1919 at his shop in DePere, Wisconsin. A buddy and I hunted from the antique wooden craft for several years, mainly offshore along the famous Lake Erie marshes that ring the lake’s Western Basin, as well as on adjoining Sandusky Bay.
One species of waterfowl, however, always seemed to elude us: the so-called king of ducks — the canvasback.
Large, handsome, fast-flying birds, canvasbacks are the so-called king of ducks.
Large, handsome, fast-flying birds, canvasbacks were not exactly numerous during those years, but they were plentiful enough to be considered fair game. No matter how hard we hunted, however, we never bagged a single one.
I retired from duck hunting and sold the boat decades ago, but in truth, I never totally lost the desire to bag a “bull can,” as hunters call the male (or drake) canvasback. Recently, I realized that I’m not getting any younger, and I decided that if I’m ever going to do it, I should probably do it soon. And I knew exactly where to begin my “hunt.”
The Ohio Decoy Collectors and Carvers Association (www.odcca.net) holds its annual, weekend-long show and sale in mid-March just south of Cleveland, this year’s gathering being the 47th. Open to the public with a nominal admission charge, it’s a celebration of all things waterfowl, from vintage duck decoys to present-day, intricately carved and hand-painted nongame birds that look as if they could come alive in your hand if you picked them up. There are also decoy carving and painting demonstrations, as well as serious competitions to determine the most lifelike birds.
The yearly ODCCA show and sale runs concurrently with the annual meeting of the Great Lakes Decoy Association, so it’s really a combination of two shows in the same location at the same time, and Brad Falkinburg, the ODCCA president, tells me it’s the largest collecting and carving show in the Midwest.
Adam Grimm (www.adamgrimm.com), a full-time professional wildlife artist, will return to the event this year to meet and greet attendees and display some of his award-winning artwork. Grimm, who was born and raised in Ohio and now lives in South Dakota, is a bona fide celebrity in the field. For a wildlife artist to win the federal “Duck Stamp” art contest — the oldest and most prestigious wildlife art competition in America — even once is a career-defining moment. Grimm has won three times.
He was just 21 years old and studying at the Columbus College of Art and Design in 2000 when he won the award for the first time with a painting of a single mottled duck (he’s still the youngest artist ever to earn the award). He took the top prize again in 2014 with his rendering of a pair of canvasbacks, and he won for the third time in 2024 with a painting of a pair of spectacled eiders. I interviewed him shortly after that first win and immediately became a fan of his art, rooting him on from the sidelines ever since.
Incidentally, only two other Ohio wildlife artists have ever won the federal Duck Stamp competition: Bob Hines in 1946 and John Ruthven in 1960 — both with paintings of redhead ducks.
But back to my quest to bag my long-sought-after bull can. Mission accomplished! At the 2025 ODCCA show, I met Robert Lewis of Eastpointe, Michigan, who’s been carving and painting waterfowl decoys professionally for half a century. His work included a beautiful drake canvasback in a resting pose (see photo on the far left) and I ordered one then and there. The bird arrived by mail a few months later, and now sits on my writing desk, forever snoozing, with its head resting comfortably on its back.
W.H. “Chip” Gross is Ohio Cooperative Living’s outdoors editor. Email him with your outdoors questions at whchipgross@gmail.com. Be sure to include “Ask Chip” in the subject of the email. Your question may be answered on www.ohiocoopliving.com!
